A Different Hero
by AlphaWolf755
Summary: Ethan lived the average vault dweller life. Was born in Vault 9, got a Pip-Boy 3000 when he turned ten, and was ready to take the G.O.A.T. He believed he was safe from the Wasteland, he was wrong. His wanderlust would bring him many memories, some he would never want to relive again. **I do NOT own anything from this story. All rights belong to the creators of the Fallout Series**
1. Prolouge

_**Prolouge**_

** First and foremost, the vaults were never meant to save anyone. That one fact had always been true. The U.S. government thought of its citizens as guniea pigs, something disposable. The secrets the American citizen didn't know were many and horrifying. Our ancestors fell for the fake senses of security and were like loyal lapdogs to their government that was slowly planning how to use them as if they were volunteers for some new drug.**

** Everyone assumed an apocalypse would happen. Not many were for sure on a single idea. No one ever thought that the bombs would fall and rain hell upon the Earth. No one, not even the people planning on sacrificing the well-being of their citizens for it. While some vaults did save people, only few did it without some kind of sick, social experiment going on inside it. The rest of them were following the orders of Vault-Tec, performing sick, sadistic acts of recklessness upon the individual vault's inhabitants. **

** Not all the vaults had a story, especially mine. I lived in a lesser known vault, by the name Vault 9. I thought I had it good, that the Overseer really did care for us. Well, I would find out that was all a big fat lie. Vault 9 was located due east from the Tower which used to be a hotel for rich, Pre-War snobs. The entrance to our vault was through some kind of man-made cavern that was dug out for Vault 9's construction in the year 2068. All work was finished by 2073 and our Vault was supplied with everything to sustain itself for just over five hundred years. Our vault was supposedly supposed to collect people with ESP or Extra-Sensory Perception, since Vault-Tec believed the ability could pass down through genetics. **

** They believed these powers if really real, could be used to try and advance human intelligence and technology by hundreds of years. But when the bombs fell on Saturday, October 23 of 2077, my great-grandmother, who was drafted for Vault 9 from belief she had precognition. She supposedly turned up five minutes before the Vault's warning system sent out the warning siren, due to her abilities and she was able to be safely tucked away into the Vault much before the first missile was fired. Great-grandma Jennifer met my great-grandfather Michael here, who was claimed to have empathy.**

** So went my family leading to my birth on the very day the bombs dropped in the year 2260. I was born Ethan Michael Payne, to my mother who was the vault pedicurist and my father who was the vault tattoo artist. I was probably the most popular kid in my class, my teacher described me as intelligent, my parents supported my baseball skills as designated hitter, and I have been told more than once I was as handsome as the devil.**

** I had dark brown hair that came down as a shaggy suave My eyes were stormy grey, and like all vault dwellers, I was pale. I stood taller than the rest of my classmates at five feet, eleven inches and I tried to be the best student I could. The year is 2277 and I'm about to take the G.O.A.T. Here is my story.**


	2. Chapter 1: The First Step of A Journey

_**Chapter 1: The First Step of A Journey**_

**I peeked open an eyelid, cringing at the bright fluorescent light that were always kept on to prevent any radroach infestations. It was five in the morning according to the clock that sat on my bedside table. The bedsheets felt rough as always and the familiar blue with a yellow stripe pattern seemed faded and boring. I slipped my feet over the edge of my bed, only in my underclothes, I opened my dresser and pulled out one of my two standard jumpsuits, my toothbrush, a comb, and a small tube of toothpaste.**

** The Pip-Boy 3000 that had been attached to my wrist since my tenth birthday seemed like a natural addition to my body. I exited my room and out of the family room which just consisted of a small sofa, a table with three chairs and a radio. I held my jumpsuit out in front of me, walking down through the halls as quickly as possible. I always liked to use the showers before anyone else was up. I could get the good one that would actually pump out some warm water.**

** At the end of the hallway, the normally automated doors turned to doors that needed to be opened with specific authority. The showers were in this hall, immediately to the left for boys. Lifting my Pip-Boy under a scanner on the side of the door, a red beam scanned over the small, beam reactive bar code that would allow me access. Since the Pip-Boys were Personal Information Processors, the bar code was used to help the Vault's systems identify who you were and to calculate your usage of resources. You were only allowed one, three minute shower each day, so the use of the scanner was so you couldn't shower again until it was the next day to prevent over-usage of the Vault's water storage. **

** The scanner flashed green for a second and then the door slid open. I stepped inside and walked over to the good shower. There were ten showers for the males and ten for females. They were almost a stall which locked with a tiny bench and a hook for undressing with a clear tube running up the side which was the towel dispenser. Then a curtain to seperate the undressing area from the shower itself. The showering area was cramped and the water shot down straight from the ceiling. I undressed, and pressed a small button, which shot warm water down onto my head. Three minutes wasn't very long, so I wasted no time lathering my hands with body wash from its dispenser and washed off yesterday's grime from the major league practice. My hair flattened against my face, and I dragged my fingers through it to make sure it was nice and clean. **

** The vault never supplied shampoo, because they claimed it was a luxury. I was temporarily startled when the water shut off, but I recovered quickly and exited the shower. I grabbed a towel and dried off, shaking the spare water droplets from my hair. Dressing in the blue and yellow jumpsuit, I exited the shower stall and walked up to a sink. I pulled the comb through my hair while brushing my teeth, to save time. It was five fifteen as I left the showers, on my way out I opened the laundry shoot and tossed the towel in. No one else was up as I made my way back to my family's room. My parents were still sleeping, so I was able to sit down at the family table and finish my homework. **

** It was supposed to be an essay on what you wanted to do and why we should get that job, since we were taking the G.O.A.T. today. If you really, really had a problem with the outcome, the Overseer and the teacher, in my case Mr. Datiel, would look over your scores and your essay to see if you could have your career changed. I wanted to be a Pip-Boy Programmer, but I really didn't care what I would do, I just didn't want to be the one burning trash. Although I think I was better at convincing people to see things my way or even telling if people are being truthful to me or not. I got at least two more pages down to my essay, when my parents got up and came out of their room. **

** My mother was tall and dark haired like me, she always had it pulled back into a tight bun though, so the only time I ever saw it down was in the morning when she had it down. My father was equally tall, but with a champagne mass of curls for hair. My mother and I shared the same eyes, while my father had light blue eyes. Adults took showers at night, so kids could get ready for school on time. My mother was dressed in a simple white blouse over her jumpsuit, which was the vault's pedicurist outfit. **

** My father's arm tattoos were completely visible, since he had his sleeves pulled all the way up. He was big on the Chinese dragon thing, so he tattooed them on his arms the day after his G.O.A.T. They both stopped at my side to kiss me on the head and my mother continued out of the room to begin her day. My dad stopped and pulled up a chair, swinging it around so he was sitting backwards on it. "How do you feel son?" He asked looking down at my essay.**

** I set down my pencil and rubbed my eyes. "Great, I'm sure its not that hard. And besides none of the jobs are that bad."**

** "Thats right, so me and your mother will be proud of you no matter what you get. And since you're old enough. Come by your old man's work place, for your first tattoo, eh. I'm sure your mother wouldn't mind at all." He smiled warmly and stood up from his chair. He then, pushed in his chair and walked from our room. I looked back down at my finished essay and rifled the pages back together. Even though I wouldn't use them, they were still worth points at my final grade. It was about five minutes to seven, and if I didn't move I would be late for class. Making sure I had everything, I shoved my chair back into place, and locked the door behind me. **

**I jogged back down through the hallway and went up two flights of stairs to the second floor. This was the floor in which the classrooms, clinic, cafeteria, and businesses were located. My classroom was at the very back of the hall and many of the kids were milling around, talking lazily about what they wanted to get for a job. I easily saw above their heads and was able to spot my friend Titus. He was African American, with dark brown eyes and was only about five feet, six inches. My fellow pupils made way for me, since they knew not to mess with me, when I had broke this guy's nose when we were fourteen for picking on this girl, since her father was fired from his job and had to become a trash burner. I hated people who didn't care for others well-beings. **

** Titus met me in the middle of the crowd and gave me a high five. "Are you ready, dude?" He asked looking extremely happy. Titus was known for being excitable. **

** "Ya, I guess. I hope its a easy as my dad says it is though. I don't think anyones' parents would be very happy if they got Waste Removal 'specialist'. My dad said they would be pretty cool about it though if it were to happen to me."**

** "You're lucky, my man. My mom said if I got anything less than Vault Physician, than she'd whip my sorry hide. But I know she just wants me to do well. I guess she thinks I have my grandpa's power of supernatural healing. While I wouldn't mind healing people, I'm just afriaid of screwing up you know. Once you take the G.O.A.T., you start your real career, but then you're officially old enough to be charged with adult criminal charges. The last person to be exiled was only a few decades ago, whose to say it won't happen again." Titus's smile faded at his thought, and a scowl took its place.**

** "I don't know why you're worrying, Titus. You're not a hoodlum or anything. You're one of the most well behaved teens here. You have nothing to worry about. Just wait and see, you may surprise yourself with your scores. What if you get like Shift Supervisor or something, eh? I may be calling you Overseer Titus Anwar by the next year!" Titus broke out in a smile again, nodding his thanks without a word and dragging me into the classroom as Mr. Datiel opened the door. The board was filled with the homework and its requirements. Mr. Datiel closed the door and pulled down the overhead sheet, so the projector could shoot up the questions onto the now-covered board. We all took our seats in the open-sided desks lined into horizontal rows. I took the front one, closest to Mr. Datiel's desk on the left side of the room, with Titus directly to my right.**

** "Good morning class. I am pleased to welcome you to your last day of school, I hope you all finished your essays." At this most kids groaned at yet another assignment they didn't complete. There seemed to be very few kids who still cared about their education. **

** Mr. Datiel continued steadily in his normal drawl. "I will pass out the tests, then on the overhead, I will put up each question for two minutes. Think carefully about each of these questions then mark one of the four choices given on your sheet. And for my sanity, please put your name on it, I don't want to hunt down those who forget, **_**again.**_** Now we will begin in a minute, pass up your essays now." From behind me, other kids handed up their essays and I accepted the stack which Mr. Datiel took gratefully.**

** The tests were then passed out and the classroom lights dimmed. The idle chatter was silenced and everyone began the test. The first question was put up on the projector and all the student's heads bent to fill in their answers. I think I went for the more sneaky, persuading type of answers, but only the teacher's scoring paper could tell for sure. Twenty minutes came and passed and when the last answer bubble was filled in, Mr. Datiel turned off the projector and called us up one at a time from our seats. I glanced at Titus, only to see him tapping his fingers nervously on the desktop. His brow was bent and a bead of sweat slid down his temple. I leaned over slowly making sure Mr. Datiel was busy discussing scores with Kenny Marks, before I whispered reassurances to him. **

** "Dude, I sure you did fine, just calm down. You're making a big deal out of nothing." I whispered softly. Titus's gaze flicked over to me for a second before locking on Mr. Datiel when he called his name. When he was reluctant to move, I gave him a little shove to get him moving, patting his back as he stood and began heading to the teacher's desk. I didn't have to strain my ears to hear Mr. Datiel slid Titus his score. Which was a piece of paper describing his job and why he was placed there. **

** Leaning forward as nonchalantly as possible, I barely heard Mr. Datiel's voice. "Mr. Anwar, I am sure this career is not quite what you had in mind for yourself, but according to the G.O.A.T. scoring system you have been placed in... Vault Teacher. Looks like you'll be taking working lessons from me now, won't you."**

** Teaching wasn't so bad, it was actually pretty good. Teachers got really good perks too. They only worked Monday through Friday, unlike most other careers. And they got better ration coupons since they gave more back to the vault community. Titus's face broke out in relief, and when Mr. Datiel asked him if he would like to review over his essay for possibility for a different career, he politely declined and came back to his desk. "Good job, didn't I tell you it would all work out."**

** "Ya, I know. I just get worked up to easy that's all. And I hope everything goes good for you too. Its your turn, Ethan." Titus said, the smile respreading back onto his features. I climbed up from my desk and taking only a few steps forward I sat down in the chair in front of Mr. Datiel. He shook my hand and from his desk he pulled out an envelope. **

** "Now Mr. Payne. I did look over your essay already, because I felt that your G.O.A.T. score was something a little outdated and unneeded here in the Vault-Tec community. Your scores have come out as the Vault Loyalty Inspector, and you know just as well as I do that Vault 9 has had no leadership issues ever. So I want you to stay behind, while I call up the Overseer to discuss what action we should take next, okay?"**

** "Yes, sir." I say politely and walk back to my seat as Mr. Datiel stands and sends everyone out since we had the rest of the day off, before we started our new careers. I watched Mr. Datiel as he held down a button on the intercom next to the door. A low buzzing started to come from it before the Overseer's voice replaced it. **

** "What do you want, Norman?" The Overseer asked, clearly annoyed. **

** "Um, well. I have Mr. Payne down here with me in the classroom. And I had some questions about his G.O.A.T. scores that requires your opinion."**

** "Hmph. Fine, I'll be down there in a minute." After this the intercomm shuts off and Mr. Datiel face broke into a small frown of worry. It was a known fact among everyone that when the Overseer is angry, somebody had a good possiblility of losing their job and going straight to trash burning. I leaned back in my seat and studied my fingernails trying to entertain myself. **

** Mr. Datiel sat back at his desk and began grading papers, before the Overseer came down here. It took about fifteen minutes before the automated doors slid open and the Overseer stepped in. He was a rather tall, thickly muscled man, whose eyes were a black-brown that darted around so much, it was as if he trusted no one. His hair was black and was buzzed extremely short. "Now what was this about Mr. Payne's scores. I was in the middle of some important paperwork and I really need to get back to it."**

** "Um...well sir. Ethan here was scored with Vault Loyaltly Inspector and I personally thought it would be a insufficient use of an able-bodied worker for the Vault communtity."**

** "Vault Loyalty Inspector?" The Overseer whispered to himself. "My word, at what a strange time as well. Maybe my prayers have been heard." The Overseer looked directly at me, circling me like I was some kind of prey. "Yes, yes, he does look the part, although relatively well-liked, could be a problem later on, hmm." Mr. Datiel was to far away to hear his whispering now, but him talking about me like this, like I wasn't right in front of him was freaking me out.**

** Looking up at Mr. Datiel he beckoned him towards me and motioned for me to stand. We both did as asked, while we waited for a few seconds for the Overseer's decision. "I've come to a decision. Mr. Payne will continue as planned as the Vault's Loyalty Inspector. But instead of working with Security Chief Stewart for training and assignments, he will work directly under me since none of the other students scored Shift Supervisor, which leaves a reasonable sized gape in my schedule for the next two months. So I expect you Mr. Payne to be at my office at eight o'clock sharp tomorrow morning so we can begin your training. Good day to the both of you." The Overseer then turned on his heel and exited the classroom. **

** "Well you heard him, Ethan. You may leave now and don't be late for that appointment. You don't want to know what happens to people who don't keep appointments with the Overseer." I nodded my head to Mr. Datiel and left him to his work. I imagianed the others would be in the Atrium playing card games like we normally did after class, but instead of going up to the first floor where the Atrium was, I went straight back down the hallway and stopped inside my father's tattoo place.**

** The steel walls were covered in pictures with everything from a simple butterfly to phrases to the most complicated of animal tattoos. The shop consisted of a small waiting section of chairs and a table filled with Grognak the Barbarian and Pugilism Illustrated magazines. Then a padded, reclining seat, similar to a dentist chair sat behind a plastic screen so it shielded the client from the eyes of others. Finally, a small storeroom were I used to restock the ink shelves for my dad, when I was younger. **

** My dad was sitting at his desk, sanitizing some needles when I walked in and began browsing the pictures for ideas. "Eh, sport. How'd you do on the old G.O.A.T., huh?"**

** "Uh, fine, I guess. I got Vault Loyalty Inspector and the Overseer will be training me himself. I have an appointment with him tomorrow morning as well."**

** "Hmph. Good job, sport. I knew you would do well. I just didn't think that job would be a possiblility any more. But its good the Overseer found a use for it. In the pamplets you get some of the best perks possible. But back to business, what do you want for your tattoo? Just remember that it will be with you for the rest of your life."**

** "I think I want a snake that wraps around my left wrist and possibly make it look like its biting the inside of my wrist, like right here." I said indicating the area where I wanted the snake to 'bite'. My dad nodded and beckoned me over to sit in the chair. **

** I decided on it being an electric blue color along the body, but the tail was too be a vibrant orange and the head a pure black. It was supposed to be some kind of Blue Coral Snake I guess. My dad began breaking the skin and it took an overall two hours to get the painful ordeal over with. It was bleeding for awhile, but my dad rubbed some biomed gel over it to make the skin heal over a bit quicker. It looked pretty sick and I'm sure Titus was going to want something like this too. He was kind of a follower, espicially of the things I do. I didn't mind since it felt kinda nice that someone wanted to be like me.**

** I had no idea what my mom would think of it, but I guess I would cross that bridge when I got there. I stood up and stretched. Thanking my dad, I decided to go meet Titus up in the Atrium to show him my new tattoo. I just had to remember that meeting with the Overseer.**

** I had already donned my new Vault career outfit, all of them being different depending on your job. Mine as Vault Loyalty Inspector was a darker blue jumpsuit with the yellow stripe going down across my shoulders. The shoes were black leather and had small compartments in it for hiding things. I was standing outside the Overseer's office just trying to steady my nerves. After the Overseer's one-sided conversation about me yesterday, he kind of gives me some bad ideas about him. I knew my doubting of the Overseer could be bad luck, given my job and its purposes and all. **

** Taking a deep breath, I stuck out my hand so my Pip-Boy could be scanned and stepped inside the room, where I would be soon sure my life would be ending.**


End file.
